Trump slams his own supporters who are angered over how his team has handled the Epstein case

NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump is lashing out at his own supporters as he tries to clamp down on criticism over his administration's handling of much-hyped records in the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking investigation, which Donald Trump now calls a “Hoax.”

“Their new SCAM is what we will forever call the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax, and my PAST supporters have bought into this “bull——,” hook, line, and sinker,” Trump wrote Wednesday on his Truth Social site, using an expletive in his post. “They haven’t learned their lesson, and probably never will, even after being conned by the Lunatic Left for 8 long years.”

“Let these weaklings continue forward and do the Democrats work, don’t even think about talking of our incredible and unprecedented success, because I don’t want their support anymore! Thank you for your attention to this matter,” he went on.

The schism between the Republican president and some of his most loyal supporters centers on his administration's handling of the Epstein case. Last week, the Justice Department and the FBI acknowledged that Epstein did not maintain a “client list" and they said no more files related to the wealthy financier’s sex trafficking investigation would be made public despite promises from Attorney General Pam Bondi that had raised the expectations of conservative influencers and conspiracy theorists.

Trump has since defended Bondi and chided a reporter for asking about the documents.

Trump and many figures in his administration, including FBI Director Kash Patel and his deputy, Dan Bongino, have spent years stoking dark and disproved conspiracy theories, including embracing QAnon-tinged propaganda that casts Trump as a savior sent to demolish the “deep state.”